Olympic Wrestling Will be Dropped After 2016: What’s Next, Track and Field?

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has gotten several things wrong over the years. Their most recent decision is certainly one of them.

In a move that has shocked fans and participants of freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling, the IOC has voted to remove the events from the Olympic Games in 2020. The committee feels it’s necessary to drop one event from the “core sports” grouping in order to add a new event. It came down to wrestling, taekwondo, field hockey and the modern pentathlon — and we all know how popular the modern pentathlon is. You know, the modern pentathlon? That event that consists of pistol shooting, fencing, freestyle swimming, show jumping (on a horse, yes) and a 3K cross-country run.

No worries, wrestlers, I’ve got your back!

WTF, IOC? Wrestling? Really? You’re removing wrestling from the 2020 games to bring in what sport, exactly? Wrestling is one of the oldest events in the modern Olympic Games. It is a sport that has enjoyed a resurgence in popularity over the past two decades — a sport that is a serious contributor to one of the fastest growing, contemporary prizefighting sports (MMA) enjoyed the world over. Of the four sports in the mix to nix, wrestling is far more entertaining and popular than the other three.

Knowing the way the IOC has operated in the past, it probably came down to which organization was sliding the most coin under the table for votes. This deal stinks of rotten cheese. Of course, this just my opinion.